Skip to main content

tv   Special Report With Bret Baier  FOX News  December 31, 2012 3:00pm-4:00pm PST

3:00 pm
right? get a friend. >> andrea: someone doesn't have a charge and willing to stay sober, charge your friends $10. and pick them up and drop them off. make cash. >> kimberly: key master. >> juan: high five from "the five" on that. too many people take it lightly. >> eric: we have to leave it there. going to greg but he went already. leave it there. thank you for joining us tonight and throughout the year. we have the greatest fans on the planet. thank you. we also wish a happy new year to bob and dana. cheers to you guys. here is to making my prediction the reality. "the five" number one in 2013. let's do it everybody. of course to the troops whose commitment to freedom keeps us safe, sound and secure. thanks to all. good night, everyone. be careful out there tonight. let's do this. >> kimberly: happy new year! >> oh, no! ♪ >> bret: two words you've likely heard too many times.
3:01 pm
"fiscal cliff." the country will officially go over it tonight. congress will miss a midnight deadline. so what now? will washington prevent significant economic fall-out come wednesday? this is "special report." ♪ ♪ good evening. i'm bret baier. when the giant crystal ball makes the last move in times square tonight, 2013 will officially be here. and so will the deadline. for a deal here in washington. politicians self-imposed fiscal cliff. the effort to make the consequences so unattractive for missing that, that both sides would have to come to agreement. at this hour, there is no legislation to vote on yet. there is every indication officially it's over that cliff we go. some things are settled.
3:02 pm
others are still in flux. that is where it starts to get technical. so let's bring in fox team coverage to straighten it out. chief white house correspondent ed henry looks at messaging and movement from president obama today. first, chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel on what seems to have been settled and how and what is still up in the air at this late hour. hi, mike. >> hi. bret. we hear from the republican senators they are optimistic and hopeful that a vote can happen sometime, perhaps later tonight. senator mitch mcconnell e-mailed and said he thought the deal was done until the white house called to say the sequestered cuts should be turned off. since then, she trying to find a way to bye down months of the cut but says the tax issues shooting forward. >> we will continue to work on finding smarter ways to cut spending. but let's not let that hold up,be protecting americans from the tax hike that will take place. we can do this.
3:03 pm
we must do this. >> though it is down to the wire. >> it's december the 31. january 1 is tomorrow, 2013. taxes go up. >> frustrated senator john thune says the senate should have acted months ago to keep the u.s. economy going off the fiscal cliff. >> i find it really hard to sit and listen to people come up now and wring their hands and talk about gee whiz. i hope we can get something done on the last day. we put two people together basically to resolve this. >> the two people were senate republican lea leader mitch mcconnell and joe biden who worked the phones after talks between mcconnell and harry reid stalled. >> discussions continue today on plan to affect the middle class families from the tax increase tomorrow. there are a number of issues in which the two sides are still apart. negotiations are continuing as i speak. >> the agreement would set the threshold for extending the
3:04 pm
bush tax cuts at $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for families. i would set the tax rate for upper income people at 39.6%. the rate under president clinton. the states would be taxed at 40% above $5 million for individuals and $10 million for a married couple. unemployment benefits would be extented a year, as with the medicare doc fix. it would permanently fix the a terptive minimum tax. a big concern for many republicans are there are no new spending cuts. >> history has a way to repeat itself. >> somehow washington never gets the message. >> here we are, 30 years later on the brink of another crisis on new year's eve, still addicted to spending money. >> last friday, speaker boehner told the senate colleagues to find bipartisan deal and the house would consider, accept or amend their plan. with time running out, house lawmakers were left working on unrelated issues and feeling like the process is broken. >> the american people are looking at congress with
3:05 pm
disdain and rightfully so. with the deadline on the tis call cliff hours away we failed to reach a reasonable compromise to move the economy forward and ward off painful tax hikes on the middle class. >> february the deal gets done, there are no -- even if the deal gets done no guarantees that republicans in the house will like it. but strong bipartisan support in the senate may help. >> bret: we'll head back for breaking details. mike emanuel on the hill. thanks. ed henry at the white house with the latest there. sned >> going. the president has been mostly watching and waiting but the republicans charge excesstive celebration from the commander-in-chief may spike the deal. >> if we are going to be serious about the deficit and debt reduction, then it's going to have to be a matter of shared sacrifice. at least as long as i'm president. i am going to be president for the next four years. >> president obama said a deal is in sight and appeared at a
3:06 pm
campaign style event to remind everyone he is winning and g.o.p. is not. >> last month, republicans in congress said they would never agree to raise tax rates on the wealthiest americans. the agreement currently discussed would raise those rates, raise them permanently. >> republicans suggest the event may backfire to accuse the republican of rubbing their nose in defeat. >> the president won. we know that. he won fair and square. isn't it now time to govern? >> the president was out of line with his comments at 1:30 afternoon. this is a delegate time. i think the democrats would be embased after what the president did. >> after months of the president promising a balanced approach there are only tax hikes for rich without new spending cuts. today he hinted at more tax hikes ahead. warning republicans that the future deficit reduction will not come from cuts alone. >> if they think that is the formula for how we solve this thing, they have another thing coming. that is not how it will work.
3:07 pm
>> republicans fire back it's time for presidential leadership, to stop exploding cost of programs like medicare. >> mr. president, i am willing to play along with my other republican colleagues the role of tip o'neil. you just need to play the role of ronald reagan. >> white house officials note the president tid offer dramatic cuts but it was speaker boehner who walked away from a $4 trillion deal. indeed, boehner may have trouble selling a time deal to conservatives after he repeatedly vowed tax hikes had to be coupled with spending cuts. >> washington has a spending problem that can't be fixed with tax increases alone. >> the other major hurdle is shutting off the sequester, especially after this vow in the final presidential debate. >> it will not happen. >> today, the republicans accused the president of moving the goalpost suggesting more tax increases needed to stop massive cuts aimed at the pentagon and elsewhere. >> the revenues have to be part of the equation in terping off the sequester.
3:08 pm
>> trouble on the left as well. senators grumbling the president gave away too much on the tax threshold of $450,000 or more. the white house is pushing back by saying that the president held firm on 39.6% at the top rate despite reports he might negotiate down to 38%. bret? >> bret: ed. in that event, the president didn't have a lot of details. it seems to be framed much like as you mention ad campaign style event. perhaps a signal that this is what we may see in the new year if the battle over the debt ceiling heats up in the next few weeks. >> in doubt. he did two things. going out and hitting republicans hard at this event he was making clear if they don't have the final deal, he will go out on the road and pound them in the days ahead to put the blame on them. the second thing he was doing, not just on the fiscal cliff. on immigration and other irks in the days ahead -- issues in the day ahead. he is going to take it to the american people on issue after
3:09 pm
issue, break. >> bret: we'll head back for anything breaking. thanks. stocks started the week up, encouraged about talk of a deal. dow finished up. the nasdaq gained 59. senate homeland security committee released a report today blasting the state department for failures leading to the deadly september 11 attack on the u.s. mission in libya. this come on the heels of a scathing report by independent state department accountability review board. chief intelligence correspondent has the story. >> senate report falls to president obama for inconsistent statement whether the benghazi assault was a terrorist attack given intelligence showed in hour that the al-qaeda affiliate was responsible on september 11. as evidence, the report cites mr. obama's interview with "60 minutes," where he tells a cbs correspondent it's too early to know how this came about, what group was involved but it was an attack on americans. the committee ranking member
3:10 pm
says the statements are part of a broader, troubling pattern. >> the administration repeatedly has refused to name the threat we face. >> senators joe lieberman and collins rank the senate investigators are denied a te tailed timeline on the c.i.a. talking points. specifically how the talking points were ma saneled with terms like al-qaeda dropped. the report says administration spent weeks to debate internally with whether or not it should turn over information delib rative to the congress. frustrated by the delay, the committee charneled the committee never fall in the same trap. >> it's not the responsibility of the intelligence community to draft unclassified talking points, for public consumption. especially in the heat of a national political campaign. >> seeming to undercut administration claims there were no actionable intelligence that could have prevented the attack. the report says patrick kennedy one of secretary of
3:11 pm
state hillary clinton's top aides said the severe threat environment was well known. >> the system was flashing red in libya and benghazi. >> the military commanderer for africa had no idea of the depth and breadth of the c.i.a. operation. the defense department would be called on to evacuate two dozen americans on short notice. >> i am concerned that the department of defense did not have assets available that could come to the rescue in a timely fashion. >> the report found no direct evidence that secretary clinton turned down security or funding request. >> as far as we can see, at the mid-level manager. >> over the weekend in an interview with "meet the press" the president seemed to play down security and intelligence failures to say they were huge problems in sloppiness, adding his administration is accepting the 29 recommendations of the state department review released in mid-december. bret? >> bret: thank you.
3:12 pm
secretary of state hillary clinton remains under hospital observation after being treated for a blood clot related to the concussion she sustained earlier in month. the doctor says the clot is between her brain and the skull behind her right ear. the doctors say it did not result in a stroke or neurolog call daniel. the clot is treated with the blood thinners. her doctors are predicting a full recovery. >> good news about former president george w. bush. the spokesman for mr. bush says he has been moved from the intensive care unit to a regular patient room at the methodist hospital in houston. the 88-year-old former president is recovering with illness that begone bronchitis related cough. navy also deployed
3:13 pm
domestically made hovercraft in the operation today. later on, you are aware of a legal limit for drinking before driving. now officials have to consider legal limits for smoking pot before getting behind the wheel. up next, if unions are in decline, how is it that a doc strike has potential to daniel the u.s. economy? -- damage the u.s. economy? since i've lost weight i have so much more energy than i used to, when i'm out with my kids, my daughter's like, "mom, wait up!" and i'm thinking, "shouldn't you have more energy than me? you're, like, eight!" [ male announcer ] for every 2 pounds you lose through diet and exercise alli can help you lose one more by blocking some of the fat you eat.
3:14 pm
simple. effective. advantage: mom. let's fight fat with alli. learn more, lose more at letsfightfat.com. they don't help single moms. hi! hi! [ sarah ] what happened to our house last year? [ daughters ] it flooded and the water flooded out. yeah. [ sarah ] the red cross arranged the hotel for us. they gave me that break, that leverage, to be able to get it together
3:15 pm
and take care of them. you know? i feel like we've come full circle. [ daughter 1 ] like that! [ daughter 2 ] this is how i'll do it. [ sarah ] there you go. >> bret: peter lanza the father of newtown shooter adam lanza claimed his son's body. no word when they were claimed or the plans for a funeral service. it could be months before they produce a final report on the investigation. union influence may be slinking. yet, its power is still significant. shipping in the gulf and northeast ground to a standstill with a possible dock workers strike.
3:16 pm
correspondent doug mckelway looks at unions within the changing globalized work force. >> 30-day contract extension agreed to by the long shoreman shipman and port operators friday temporarily averts a shutdown of the 14 ports from massachusetts to texas. 14,000 long shoremen still find their jobs threatened by out automation. today it takes one long shoreman to do the works of three we have seen before. >> efficiency and new productivity, machines come in play. people are displaced by that. to maintain cost and come pettive market we have to pay attention to. president obama is beholden to unions. he's made a point of supporting them.
3:17 pm
>> look at how the unions built the stronger middle class and stronger america. >> day after that, michigan became the 24 state to pass right to worklaugh. the president option to reward unions are limited. >> we'll expect the leadership from president obama. >> more than 5700 new regulations posted in 90 days alone. >> way to do it from the union per speculative to raise the workers' pay around the world. >> laying the ground work to protect workers from detroit to juarez to shanghai to bogata. getting the government and
3:18 pm
multinational organizations to agree is another matter. >> bret: thank you. still ahead, the french soak the rich tax proposal hit a speed bump. law enforcement works on setting a legal limit for driving after smoking pot. this is america.
3:19 pm
we don't let frequent heartburn come between us and what we love. so if you're one of them people who gets heartburn and then treats day afr day... block the acid with prilosec otc and don't get heartburn in the first place! [ male announcer ] e pill eachmorning. 24 hours. zero heartbur
3:20 pm
mommy's having a french fry. yes she is, yes she is. [ bop ] [ male announcer ] could've had a v8. 100% vegetable juice, with three of your daily vegetable servings in every little bottle.
3:21 pm
>> bret: looking live at capitol hill. you see the dome light at the top of the call to dome. that means that congress is in session. they are trying to get legislation moving on the senate floor.
3:22 pm
technically tonight the u.s. goes over the fiscal cliff. we'll talk about that and we'll have details with the panel coming up. this, of course, is new year's eve. the last day and night of 2012. hundreds of thousands of revelers around the globe expected to cram in new york city times square to see the ball drop and ring in 2013. you are looking live there at times square. ray kelly says times square will be the safest place in world tonight. celebrate all american new year's 2013 with my colleagues megyn kelly and bill hemmer. back again. you have don't want to miss it. where are you spending new year's eve? anything interesting? let me know on twitter. follow me --
3:23 pm
@bretbaeir. interesting story. mexican drug cartels are looking north, but way north. halfway up to california to move their product. >> e, tortion to vicious crime and working with street gang. are mexican cartels strengthen their grip in california? >> yes. what concerns me is the political shift in mexico. the shift might make it stronger in california. >> change of political leadership south of the border, there is a fear the mexican government mite not crack down and fight cartels like in recent years. this concerns the sheriff who sees the cartel becoming more brazen. >> they are recruiting from gangs in the southwest to do their work. it's about the money.
3:24 pm
i have never seen the street gangs have a position of authority. like a laborerer. >> cartels have been work in cartels for years but to make more money, avoid prosecution and strengthen, they eliminated the middleman and work directly with california street and prison gaps. they are going out of their way literally to extent authority over california drug trafficking shipping drugs on both several hundred miles north of the border. >> where we are at, on the challenge, they have budget. moving to more sophisticated means of smuggling; particularly, low profile vessels we call the semi-submersible self-propelled vessels. even with the potential of them fully submersible submarines which is worth billions of dollars. >> recent f.b.i. report on the u.s. bang activity four in step bang member have some tie to mexican drug cartel. far more than any other
3:25 pm
outside group. gang activity shot up by 40% to 1.4 million members. >> bret: adam housley in los angeles. thank you. now that recreational marijuana is legal in two states and medical marijuana is sold in 17 more, law enforcement is looking to set a legal limit. correspondent william la jeunesse on what is too stoned to drive. >> well, nationally, 33% of those killed in auto accidents have some drug other than alcohol in their system. legalizing pot will make it worse is the fear. pot advocates say it's not true that smokers know when they are too high to drive. washington state taking no chances imposing a strict limit on the amount of pot drivers can have in their system. >> you want to know why i pulled you over? smoking the reefer. >> illegal research shows that more drivers are toking up. studies like this one in
3:26 pm
europe show too much marijuana affects coordination and judgment. >> one of the first and most important thing inability or reduced ability to divide one's ability. >> it's less debilitating than alcohol. canadian study shows those driving within three hours of smoking pot are twice as likely to cause a crash. >> another affect that we see are those driving under marijuana reduced ability to perceive time and distance. >> how much is too much? >> i feel we are in unchartered territory. >> the limit is five nanograms per blood sample. impairment is equal to alcohol.
3:27 pm
>> heavy users though not impaired can test positive weeks after smoking. also what you smoke and how you smoke it affects people differently. even experts don't know how much pot causes impairment. >> to say that two hits or two dosals would get me 5 nangram, it is impossible to make that. >> the compound in pot is thc, and it's stored in fat. user could test positive weeks after smoking. bottom line this is going to be argued and litigated. in alcohol we started at is 1.5 and game down. advocates argue it should be 10 nanogram to reach impairment. william la jeunesse, fox news. >> bret: update on how the fiscal cliff affects wall street or could affect wall street, as we near the 11th hour. france tried to put a heavy tax burden on millionaires. the result, find out next.
3:28 pm
3:29 pm
3:30 pm
>> bret: no grapevine. top story, fiscal cliff is going over it. the senate majority leader, not moved the bill to the senate floor yet. the house would only deal with whatever passed the senate. if it passed the senate at all. all indications are the house will not vote on any fiscal cliff legislation tonight.
3:31 pm
here is how the potential deal stacks up. they will be taxed at 39.6%. up from 35%. tax on capital gain and individuals for $400,000 for individuals would increase to 20%. from 15%. the alternative minimum tax is permanently indexed to inflation. it has been annual patch. that would be permanent. the plan extent the child tax red earned income tax credit. up to $2,500 tax credit for collision tuition. unemployment benefit are extented for one year. same for the medicare doc fix and the social security payroll tax cut. reverse to rate of 6.2%. those are the deals as they
3:32 pm
stand right now. although things are developing and they could change. those looking to europe for inspir ration and coming up with american tax rates that target the rich may have to rethink the strategy based on a ruling by a french court. senior foreign affairs correspondent greg palkot has that story. >> proponents of the high taxes in france took a bit of a hit over the weekend. >> the french constitutional council or court ruled plan 75% tax on those earning $1 million euros or $1.3 million or more a year should be thrown out as unfair. it had already been blasted by the government critics as anti-entrepreneur. a critic said it was fiscal bludgeoning, the government trying to balance budget on back of the rich. it sparked word that some high rollers were going to leigh the country including well-known french actor set to move his home to next dor lower tax belgium.
3:33 pm
high tax in french residents is not defeated. the court threw out the tax on technicality. saying it was imposed on the individuals rather than the tax structure of the household. they are planning to reissue a rewarded tax bill to claim there are new tax hikes that the court didn't donnel or left in place. regardless the forever stock market seemed to like the message it bucked a europe wide down trend and up half a percent in a shortened trading day. bret? >> bret: greg, thank you. let's take a look at wall street's reaction to the ongoing fiscal cliff negotiations and what happened today. fox business network senior washington correspondent peter barnes at the white house tonight with the latest. good evening. >> good evening. well, the dow was up more than 1% today on optimism that at least most of the bush tax cuts will be extented for almost everybody. they are worth more than $3 trillion over the next ten years. that means $3 trillion and more that will stay in the pockets of consumers so they
3:34 pm
can go out and buy cars and houses and refrigerators. and ipads. and iphones which will be good for corporate profits. >> if we get a fiscal deal that really addresses the long-term trajectory, that might be the final piece of the rubix cube to lift markets to take them up to double digit gains for 2013. >> that follows the double digit gains for two of three major indexes in 2012 with the gains today. the dow jones/industrials average finished up more than 7% for the year. the broader s&p 500 was up about 13.5%. the tech heavy nasdaq, which includes apple, that sellles iphones and ipads was up 16% for the year, bret. >> bret: what about the invester provisions and framework of the deal? >> it includes provisions to cover taxes on the capital gains and dividends, which is
3:35 pm
of course very important to average invesors. under the proposal, they would stay at 15% for families making under $450,000 a year and individuals making under $400,000 a year. but for families in the vims making over those bench marks they would go up to 20%. under this deal. >> bret: the big question really are there the votes in the senate to get through logistically over hurdles it would neat to get through? are there votes in the house if thenate passes to get it through as it stands? go right now this is proposal of framework for a deal, right? >> bret: it's really up in the air. peter barnes at the white house. thank you. >> washington has more than five hours to hash out this deal. latest on the fiscal cliff negotiations. little longer than that, actually. we'll explain that with the fox all-stars after this. ♪
3:36 pm
i wish my patients could see what i see. ♪ that over time, having high cholesterol and any of these risk factors can put them at increased risk for plaque buildup inheir arteries. so it's even more important to lower their cholesterol, and that's why, when diet and exercise alonaren't enough, i prescribe crestor. in a clinical trial versus lipitor, crestor got more high-risk patients' bad cholesterol to a goal of under 100.
3:37 pm
[ female announcer ] crestor is not right for everyone. like people with liver disease or women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. tell your doctor about other medicines yore taking. ll your doctoright away if you have muscle pain or weakness, feel unusually tired, have loss of appetite, upper belly pain, dark urine or yellowing of skin or eyes. these could be signs of rare but serious side effects. ♪ is your cholesterol at goal? talk to youdoctor about crestor. [ femalannouncer ] if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. by showing you the apartment building where the fire was. when things like this happen, i think you find a new perspective on life. red cross put us in a hotel so we were able to stay together. we're strong and if we overcame that or if we can overcome that... we can overcome anything. [ sniffles ] ♪
3:38 pm
>> bret: fox news alert. looking live at capitol hill. we got official word that the house adjourned until noon january 1, 2013. they are done. no specifics. as to the legislative program for tomorrow. they said earlier they didn't think it was going to happen tonight. but they were on standby. all the lawmakers are told to
3:39 pm
standby in case the senate came back with something. the senate has not moved any piece of legislation to the floor. senate majority leader harry reid has not moved anything. so far they are moving on. going over the fiscal cliff. meanwhile, the president talked about it today. >> democrats and republicans in congress have to get this done. but they are not there yet. they are close. but they're not there yet. and one thing we can count on with respect to this congress is that if there is even one second left before you have to do what you are supposed to do, they will use that second. >> we will continue to work on finding smarter ways to cut spending but let's not let that hold up and protect americans from the tax hike to take place in ten hours.
3:40 pm
ten hours from now. we can do this. we must do this. >> bret: it's not clear whether they can. it's not clear whether that is all of them believe they must. bring in the panel. jonah goldburg. kirsten powers if for daily beast. syndicated columnist charles krauthammer. begin with the president's statement today that happened mid-day. he framed it as ed henry said as campaign style event. middle class families behind him. didn't have a lot of details and has had the same feel as he has had many times on the stump. >> i found it astonishing. he comes out with incredible arrogance. spikes the football on the republicans and rubs in they were resisting a raise in rate
3:41 pm
and he made them do it. of course, as always, he places himself hobbing benignly at olympian level above the fray. where the children are playing in the sand box and he is asking that everybody be reasonable. as if he just arrived in washington on a tourist visa. he goes in detail. he says i'm giving the republicans zero on spending. i mean zero. not even discretionnary spending. this is after he killed a proposal from the minority leader senate. for the tiniest changes in cost of living, a technical change. that is rejected. tax hikes all in rates, no cuts in spending and worse than that, after all of this is done and i shew it down your throats we know goshate later for spending cuts -- negotiate later for spending cuts, no, it won't happen that way. if there are any spending cuts in the future, there has to be
3:42 pm
increase, further increase in taxes. on the rich,, of course, millionaires to balance out spending cuts. he laid out radically oppositionist. i think he wants to go over the cliff. >> bret: john mccain said just that, that it seemed like the president wanted to go over the cliff by that event alone and how the tone and tententenno -- tenor he used throughout the event. what is the white house thinking strategy wise. what is really going on here? >> i always said and i still believe they don't want to go over the cliff. certainly the policy people don't want to go over the cliff. it's hot for the u.s. economy. the president has no vested interest in doing something bad to the u.s. economy. >> bret: be honest, technically we are. the house, they don't have a bill tonight --
3:43 pm
>> that is the outcome he necessarily wanted. >> i don't think it was. i know the republicans say it is. there are liberals. a lot of liberals want to go over. probably did this today because there is no deal coming together. i put republicans on that front. they haven't brought much to the table. they talk about the the entitlement cuts they want. what entitlement cuts? boehner gave a piece of paper that hardly said anything on it. rubio tweeted out that the president was open to social security cuts. but the republicans weren't. so i'm a little confused about what cuts the republicans want so much they're not getting. >> i was eager to hear kirsten stake on it because i thought that press conference was baffling. very strange thing. it's put me in the other worldly and uncomfortable position of thinking that joe
3:44 pm
biden is the grownup in the white house. you got a sense from obama he is the sab tier in his own -- saboteur in his own white house. when he said how the republicans have agreed to raising taxes, that was in effect rhetorical poison pill to house republicans. the house republicans want to do is tomorrow when the taxes go all up, that the bush tax cut expire they say that they are voting to cut taxes. they are spinning this to raise taxes. i don't think the republicans should allow themselves to be baited by obama. >> bret: the or thing is talk about the sequester. you will remember of course in debate, in october. the president said this. about the sequester.
3:45 pm
>> first of all, is sequester is not something that i propose. something that congress is proposed. he will not happen. >> bret: part of the solution for the super committee. that was part of the deal. negotiating now is delay it by a couple of months. which potentially negotiate on fiscal cliff number two, the debt ceiling battle. and throw in dealing with the sequester as well. we're waiting to hear what the details of that, because we don't know. on the taxes, just on the taxes, as they are structured now, if you look at the tax deal, comparing it to what the re-knew you would get over ten years, it's roughly $600 billion that they get revenue coming in from the tax
3:46 pm
deal they are striking with the framework tonight. hurricane sandy recovery billion is $60.4 billion. it's about the same annually. >> preclintonnian tax and spend democratic philosophy. you take in $60 billion a year from the rich. and it's simply you spend half of that on unemployment insurance. the rest of is it spent on all the credits, tax credits which are going to be undone. which will be retaped. if a cliff is avoided and the deal was accepted. you take the money and you spend money. this would increase the debt and deficit. republicans have one choice in the house. i don't know if boehner is able to do it. we'll go over the cliff of midnight tonight. the rates will be at the high rate.
3:47 pm
the bush tax cut will be over. if boehner is smart and the republicans including the conservatives in the caucus are smart, they would accept that, because there is no way it will be stopped. on thursday, the new republican house, should pass a bill, stand-alone bill that abolishes -- well, say that in reenacts the bush cuts for everybody up to $450,000. do it as a straight tax reduction. those who resisted it a week ago tax hike on the rich can argue it's not a hike, the hike already happened. but that is the only way to pre-empt obama extending all of this and making the republicans, fall guys for a hike in middle class taxes. >> bret: we're assuming it is past the senate. you have senators who have all
3:48 pm
expressed major concerns. >> you just know three most liberal senators, it's absurd, it should be million. >> you know anybody can stand up in the senate to cause the problems. >> but a lot of people are unfair and unrealistic and the president moved a lot. the fact he has moved up off of the $250,000 when he has given in on the tax cuts before. i think that the republicans are being extremely unreasonable. none of this adds up. >> bret: we'll talk more about this. we also have an 8:00 p.m. show tonight, believe it or not.
3:49 pm
we have more to talk about. keep it here. humans. even when we cross our t's and dot our i's, we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement and accident forgiveness if you qualify. see what else comes standard at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy?
3:50 pm
3:51 pm
3:52 pm
as i see the thing developing, quite frankly, as i said before no, deal is better than a bad deal. this looks like a very bad deal the way this is shaping up. >> democrat senator tom harkin as you look live at the senate floor. and well, i think that senator stabenow down there in the blue. other than that, it's pretty empty. we did get word moments ago there is a democratic caucus meeting around 7:00.
3:53 pm
maybe 7:30 where vice president biden will update the caucus on the state of the deal. senate democrats we're told have not signed off on the deal. after the caucus there is an expectation of votes around possibly 10:00 p.m. maybe later. as we get word about the senate action. and knowing about it. but it will be a while. 10:00 p.m. we're going to be back here at 8:00 p.m. you were saying about this deal, we rudely cut you off before. that the entitlement reform is not specific on the republican side. democratic side, frankly there is no spending cuts in this deal. no additional spending cuts. >> there this is the other part of this. obama doesn't -- obama believes in stimulating the economy through spending. he doesn't believe in making all the cuts. so again, like you are asking him to adopt a world view he doesn't have. >> bret: even though he talked about it many times. >> he does talk about it.
3:54 pm
>> expounding upon it. fixing social security and medicare. >> anybody who reads paul krugman, grand pubah of economics on the left his worry that the deficit will be reduced too fast. i'm not endorsing this from a policy perspective. i'm telling grow a political perspective this is the situation with the president. so to say he should want cuts that the republicans want is to ask him to adopt a philosophy he doesn't have. i'd say if i was a republican, i would be bothered by republican party not being more specific and holding his feet to fire on it. >> bret: the senate democratic caucus could slip a the white house is saying that the vice president heading up there the time is not firm. >> so we'll be here. >> bret: we'll be here covering it for you. >> big night. >> bret: the countdown to vice president bide boyd a -- biden arriving. >> that is his philosophy about the economics, keynesian and pump-primer and the rest. but if you take it as a given
3:55 pm
that is what he truly believes it renders vast swath of what he has said in the last five or six or ten years to be simply dishonest and untrue. because he talked enormously about how -- he called george bush's deficits, smaller than his own unpatriotic. he talked about how he rein in entitlements. he talked about these thicks. your defense of him boils down he didn't mean those things, he just means to keep the economy -- >> that was prior to the economy collapsing. then he felt we needed to stimulate it. i don't think going back prior to the collapse is fair. >> he is not a republican but he is an american. you have $16 trillion of debt, at the end of his term we have $22 trillion of tet. which will destroy the u.s. economy. he knows it. everyone was. can't say i'm not interested in reducing debt. it's completely irresponsible. you can't hurt the country by doing that. >> bret: you get another
3:56 pm
bite at this apple. that is it for this panel. stay tuned for 2012 flashback. [ male announcer ] what are happy kids made of? bikes and balloons, wholesome noodles on spoons. a kite, a breeze, a dunk of grilled cheese. catches and throws, and spaghettio's. that's what happy kids are made of. campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do.
3:57 pm
3:58 pm
>> bret: finally tonight, 2012, what a year it was. tonight, before the ball goes down, we take it all in quickly and for every story important to you, "special report" had it covered. >> ♪
3:59 pm
>> we're not going backwards. we're going forwards. [chanting] whoo! ♪

405 Views

info Stream Only

Uploaded by TV Archive on